Pies and pasties that will be served at Coventry's new Ricoh Arena have been given the thumbs-up by one of the Sky Blues' biggest fans.

Jack Entwhistle gave his seal of approval to Warwick-based Shire Foods, which has won the contract to supply pies, pasties and sausage rolls for fans on match days.

The 85-year-old knows more than most about what makes a good half-time snack - he has not missed a game since first seeing City back in 1925.

In fact, the only games Jack missed were the ones played while he was serving with the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers during the Second World War in Egypt and Italy.

Less than a month before the big kickoff at Rowleys Green, Jack was called in to give his expert opinion on Shire Foods, which supplies food to more than 40 football clubs.

The Montague Road company is the market leader, sending more than 300,000 pastry products to grounds every Saturday during the football season.

For the past 10 years it has been supplying Highfield Road where fans used to munch their way through almost 2,000 every match day - with steak and kidney and chicken balti the most popular flavours.

Jack said: "I am a steak and kidney pie man myself and, like many fans, I cannot wait to be tucking into a pie at half-time at the first game - although I must say that in my 80 years' experience, they always taste that little bit better if we are winning."

Vic Doyle, director of Shire Foods, which is about to move into a new £5 million factory in Leamington, is delighted with the Ricoh contract.

He said: "Pies and pasties have become something of a tradition on match days for most football fans. The vast majority of the workers at the factory are Sky Blue supporters so it is wonderful we are continuing our association with the club by supplying the pies to the Ricoh Arena."

Nick Wilson, retail and exhibition manager at the arena, believes the range of food will prove popular.

He said: "We aim to provide the best quality and range of product, which is why we are pleased to have appointed Shire Foods. But we are always looking to improve what we have to offer further and that is why we will be launching a Pizza-Pod product from Shire Foods in the new year."